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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

From Lear stripping off in the storm, to André, in Florian Zeller’s The Father, lamenting “I’m losing all my leaves”, drama has powerfully portrayed the heartbreaking destruction of dementia. Now it’s the turn of Queenie in Tanika Gupta’s immensely poignant new play: a brilliant, tough Bengali matriarch (movingly portrayed by Meera Syal) whose fierce dismissal of her adult children’s concerns over her increasing forgetfulness is rapidly undermined by the onset of Alzheimer’s.  

It’s a painful subject, but theatre is a great space to discuss it. Here story can offer companionship to affected audience members and bridge the gap between the outside world and the world of the mind.

Gupta deftly feels her way along this tightrope. As Zeller does with The Father, she uses stagecraft to bring us into Queenie’s experience. But while Zeller deploys confusing shifts in time and character to express the disorientation of dementia, here Queenie’s experience is more varied. Certainly it’s grim. There is shock and bewilderment as Queenie, owner of a successful Michelin-starred restaurant in London, suddenly realises that she is planning for an event that took place months earlier. Then there’s denial and rage as she refuses to accept what’s happening. Finally there is terrifying confusion as her grip of who and where she is disintegrates.

But although the play is unflinchingly honest, there are also sharp shafts of humour and solace in the elision between memory and reality. Queenie’s long-deceased husband Ameet comes to visit her — episodes that we, like she, experience just as vividly as everything going on around her in the present day. As we skip back to Queenie’s early married life in Calcutta, we see her as she was: clever, passionate, determined. These scenes are often suffused with warmth, but Zubin Varla also makes Ameet an ambivalent figure as he coaxes Queenie to plunge with him into the sea of oblivion.

Pooja Ghai’s fluid staging guides us through this seesawing landscape, with Rosa Maggiora’s subtly lit, stratified backdrop rippling with blue like the sea, glowing red like the sunset, or flashing like electrical brain impulses.  We see what Queenie sees but also what her distressed children (Raj Bajaj, Natalie Dew and Marc Elliott) witness as they cope with her volatile mood swings and sometimes deeply hurtful behaviour.

There are many references to Lear, not least in the painful issue of who should look after the ailing parent — a question that highlights both clashing cultural expectations and the current crisis in care for the elderly. A desolate scene, with the family standing outside Queenie’s care home window mid-pandemic, reminds us of how many died, isolated, at that time. Stephen Fewell’s lovely performance as a gentle carer pays quiet tribute to this critical workforce.

It’s a play that tries to cover a few too many areas, but it’s honest, tender and moving. Syal is superb: an indomitable spirit to begin with, she dwindles before our eyes into a silent, crumpled shell. But she, Gupta and Ghai leave us with a version of rebirth, an image of Queenie in her prime. It’s a potent reminder that inside every frail elder is stacked a whole life: a person still to be cherished.

★★★★☆

To November 16, nationaltheatre.org.uk

A HUGE shake up of pension schemes could boost retirement savings for millions of workers.

A new type of workplace pension, known as Collective Defined Contribution (CDC), recently launched and could soon be expanded.

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Currently ,there are two main types of pensions through employers – defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC).

DB pensions pay you a guaranteed income in retirement based on your salary, while with DC pensions, you build up a pot of money and then take an income from it after you stop working.

CDC pension schemes, on the other hand, are where employer and member contributions are pooled together into a collective fund and invested, with the aim of growing this pool of money over time.

Workers are then given a target pension income they will be able to take once they retire.

Companies in the UK have been able to offer CDC pensions since 2022, when new rules gave them the go ahead, and Royal Mail this week became the first company to launch one.

Now, the scheme could be expanded so that millions more workers can take advantage after the Government launched a new consultation.

It’s proposing that access should be broadened by allowing a wider range of businesses and employees to sign up.

As it stands, only single companies, or companies connected to them, can set up CDC schemes.

But the Government wants schemes to be open to multiple, unconnected employers, making the schemes more accessible.

Minister for Pensions, Emma Reynolds, said: “We are seizing this exciting opportunity to modernise our pensions market to deliver better outcomes for millions of workers.

“People work hard to put money aside for their pension with every pay cheque. This significant innovation will offer a more predictable income and greater finance security for future pensioners.”

The consultation is calling for views from employers, industry experts, pension providers and the public on draft regulations and their potential impact.

It will run for six weeks – until November 19.

It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves launched a huge review of pension schemes that aims to add over £11,000 extra to a typical retirement pot.

What do the experts say?

Experts and others in the industry are being encouraged to take part in the consultation, and many see it as a positive for the UK workforce.

Nausicaa Delfas, chief executive of The Pensions Regulator, said: “Multi-employer CDC pension schemes offer the potential to deliver better outcomes for thousands of UK pension savers, turning a pension pot into a retirement income.

“I encourage industry to take part in the consultation and we look forward to working with Government to develop an appropriate regulatory regime.”

Others say that the announcement of the consultation shows the current government is putting CDC schemes in the spotlight.

And David Brooks, head of policy at independent consultancy Broadstone, said: “Today’s consultation and the rhetoric from the Pensions Minister suggests CDC will be a core pension policy for the current Government.

“They seem clear that CDC could be an answer to many of the issues in the current pension system – including greater investment in the UK economy – and are looking to replace the reliance on individual DC pots with pooling of collective pots.

“However, if CDC is to gain a foothold in the UK’s pension provision, then there has to be an allowance for unconnected employers to work together. If not, CDC will remain the domain of only the very largest employers.”

However, Mr Brooks pointed out that launching a new model of pension saving will likely prove a huge operational and financial challenge for smaller employers who also went through the auto-enrolment reforms in the past.

He added that there’s uncertainty over how the “club” approach – where multiple employers pool together – would work in reality.

“The design, regulation and authorisation of these schemes will also need to be implemented correctly, and the current consultation will form the bedrock of this,” he added.

In terms of what the shakeup could mean for workers, Steve Webb, former pensions minister and current partner at LCP, said it should be a good idea for many.

“In principle, these schemes could be good news for people who are looking for something more than an individual pot of money which they have to manage at retirement,” he said.

“Similar schemes have worked reasonably well in other countries such as Netherlands, Scandinavia and Canada, though with local variations in exactly how they worked.”

How does a CDC scheme differ?

Previously, workers only had two types of pensions to choose from.

DB pensions are where what you get in retirement is decided based on your salary, and you’ll be paid a set amount each year on retirement.

These schemes are not usually offered to new workers any more, apart from in some public sectors such as the NHS and teaching.

DC schemes are where contributions from you and your employer are invested and then your retirement pension depends on the size of your individual final pension pot.

CDC schemes are seen as sitting between the two, but with a CDC pension, you don’t get your own pot.

Instead, workers in your business will put money into a collective pot – with your employer contributing too.

This pot is shared between workers, with each employee drawing an income from this big fund when they reach retirement.

Mr Webb explained: “The idea of a collective DC scheme is that it falls somewhere between the two extremes of old-style Defined Benefit (DB) pensions where there is a hard promise and the employer has to bear all the risks, to new-style individual DC pensions where the risks around investment performance, inflation and how long you live are all on the individual.”

He pointed out that in a CDC you are given a target pension figure for each year you are in the scheme, and while it’s not guaranteed, it’s what you’re aiming for.

Mr Webb added: “If everything goes well you may get a bit more. If things go badly then workers and pensioners might get a bit less. This could be, for example, lower annual inflation increases than they were expecting or even – in extreme cases – a cut in pension.

“The idea is that you do all of this collectively – this means at scale (which could improve cost-effectiveness) and by pooling risks across large numbers of members of all ages.”

He also said that a particular advantage is that a CDC pension lasts as long as you do – so you don’t have to manage an individual pot in your seventies and eighties and hope it doesn’t run out.

Can I get more cash through a CDC scheme?

In theory, you could get more money when you retire under a CDC scheme.

Hargreaves Lansdown’s senior pensions and retirement analyst, Helen Morrissey, previously told The Sun that this is because workers of different ages will invest into a collective pot of money.

This allows cash to be invested in “higher risk investments that might not be otherwise possible for older workers”, she said.

This is because there is a much bigger pot of money to invest, compared to your own individual pot.

The bigger the amount you invest, potentially the bigger the profit you could make – but you are in no way guaranteed a return.

“If times are tough on the stock market, or people – especially those in ill health – transfer out, then the scheme may have to reduce the income it aims to pay out,” she said.

How can I sign up?

Your employer will have to set up a CDC scheme before you can apply to it.

Employers can set themselves up with a CDC scheme if it’s currently an option for them.

It’s worth getting in touch with your company to see whether it is planning to offer this option or not.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

A CHRISTMAS market in the UK has been named one of the best in Europe.

Taking 8th place is none other than the UK’s Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market.

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Set against Victoria Square and the new Street shopping district, the market is the largest authentic German Christmas market outside of Austria and Germany.

It’s organised by Birmingham’s sister city of Frankfurt with over 100 stalls selling traditional toys, ornaments, arts and crafts.

There’s also a wide selection of traditional German food and drink on offer, including bratwurst, pretzels, schnitzels, roasted almonds, glühwein, weissbeer, and hot chocolate. 

And a free live music programme with performances from German and Birmingham musicians takes place.

Rides and attractions include a Big Wheel, a Carousel, Danters AIR (a swing, spin and loop ride), and an ice rink.

But perhaps the most famous attraction of them all is a singing moose called Chris Moose.

The Christmas moose, a faux deer head, become quite the sensation over the years by belting out Christmas classics during the festivities.

He even has his own X profile, where he keeps followers entertained with hilarious pun-based jokes.

Some of his best posts include: “I had a great joke about German Christmas cake but someone’s stollen it.”

And: “What are the best Christmas jumpers made from? Fleece Navidad!”

People who have visited the market over the years have taken to Tripadvisor to share their thoughts.

One person wrote: “Had a wonderful time on our overnight visit to Birmingham Market.

“Lots of traditional German food and drink to try, with plenty of festive entertainment around. Queue’s were not too long either.”

Another said: “Look forward to this every year, gluwein music and fun.

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“Also plenty of others bars around once you’ve had your German wurst and a pint or two.”

The city’s Christmas market was given a place in the top 10 by European Best Destinations.

The list comprises of 20 markets, which were ranked based on more than 590,000 votes of worldwide travellers.

Advent Feast at the Basilica in Budapest, Hungary was awarded the top spot, for its beautiful location, unique festive atmosphere, gastronomic adventures, and heart-warming musical and charity programmes.

Two more Christmas markets in Europe also made the list – London’s Hyde Park Winter Wonderland and Manchester’s Christmas market.

Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market will return to the city centre from Friday, November 1 and run until December 24.

In the mean time, here is Butlin’s ‘ultimate Christmas holiday weekend’ launching this year.

And here are some affordable December city breaks you can still book.

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Oil prices sank sharply on Tuesday, falling by more than 5 per cent on worries over the Chinese economy and extending the recent series of wild swings to hit the market. 

Benchmark Brent crude fell 5.4 per cent to $76.56 a barrel after rising by 10 per cent in the four trading days following Iran’s missile strike on Israel on October 1. 

The move was triggered by a lack of new spending commitments from Beijing, following more than a week of frenzied speculation that significant economic stimulus measures were on the way, sparking concerns over the strength of demand from the world’s second-largest economy and forcing traders to exit their bullish bets.

“It’s an overbought market correcting,” said Jorge Montepeque at Onyx Capital Group. After falling below the $70-a-barrel threshold in September on worries over the Chinese economy and the prospect of Opec increasing its production in December, the tensions in the Middle East, coupled with a promise of stimulus from Beijing, re-energised the market, he said. 

“Prices rallied on a combination of buying from day traders, retail and professional traders. The latter group had scoped out the opportunity created by too many shorts and pounced on them,” he said. But with Israel yet to counter attack Iran, and in the absence of strong fiscal measures by China, the “market will deflate again”.

In a sign of lowered tension over a potential Israeli attack on Iran, TankerTrackers.com said it had spotted three supertankers loading an estimated 4.7mn to 4.9mn barrels of oil at Iran’s Kharg Island oil terminal. Previously, ships had moved away from the terminal, fearing that it might be hit by Israel.

Samer Mosis, head of fundamentals at Energy Aspects, also said traders were taking profits and added that the strengthening of Hurricane Milton in Florida could reduce demand for petrol in the state. “Given the lack of damage to refineries or upstream platforms, the hurricane will probably be net bearish for oil markets by hurting demand,” he said. 

Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS, said he expected prices would stabilise around current levels until there was clarity over Israel’s reaction to Iran.

“I do not see the geopolitical risk premium disappearing. If Israel attacks, we do not know whether Iran will counter attack, so that’s a reason to keep the risk premium in the price,” he said.